The champions gifted the Gunners their first two goals, and from there they fell apart in north London
Manchester City showed their struggles are far from over as they suffered a humbling 5-1 loss against Arsenal on Sunday. The reigning English champions were self-destructive from the beginning, and the likes of Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva didn't put up much of a fight under Arsenal's pressure.
It was the worst possible start for City as Maniel Akanji surrendered an early goal. The defender failed to deal with John Stones' risky pass and Arsenal were quick to pounce, with Kai Havertz setting up Martin Odegaard. The visitors almost gave away a second goal thanks to an awful ball from Stefan Ortega resulted in a shot from Havertz, but the German's effort went wide.
City grew into the game with Savinho and Omar Marmoush looking to create something as Erling Haaland was kept silent up front for the entire first half. The striker reminded the Gunners he should never be written off, though, when got up to meet Savinho's perfect delivery and head past David Raya.
However, just 38 seconds after the restart, Arsenal were ahead again through a deflected strike from Thomas Partey, and just six minutes later they were 3-1 up through a fantastic Myles Lewis-Skelly strike.
City hoped the humiliation was complete in the 76th minute when an Arsenal counter-attack ended with Havertz squeezing it past Ortega, but Ethan Nwaneri added a fifth late on.
GOAL rates City's players from Emirates Stadium…
AFP
Goalkeeper & Defence
Stefan Ortega (5/10):
Gave Arsenal a great chance with a silly pass that Havertz wasted. Perhaps should have done better with a couple of goals, too.
Matheus Nunes (5/10):
A weak point defensively and didn't offer enough going forward.
Manuel Akanji (3/10):
Gave the ball away for Odegaard's goal in the worst possible start.
John Stones (4/10):
Set Akanji up for failure with his early pass and put up no resistance for either of Lewis-Skelly's or Havertz's goals.
Josko Gvardiol (5/10):
Had some decent moments but was exposed defensively.
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Midfield
Bernardo Silva (5/10):
Took the sting out of City's attacks by constantly passing backwards.
Mateo Kovacic (7/10):
Put in a solid performance. He fought for the ball and tried his best to get something going.
Omar Marmoush (6/10):
Excellent dead-ball deliveries and a few good passes before he went off after 72 minutes.
Getty Images Sport
Attack
Phil Foden (4/10):
His terrible pass sent Partey on his way to a stunning goal, summing up the Englishman's performance.
Erling Haaland (5/10):
Was out of the game until he popped up with the equaliser in the 55th minute.
Savinho (7/10):
Was really lively on the wing and teed up Haaland with a fantastic cross.
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Subs & Manager
James McAtee (5/10):
The damage was done by the time he came on, and he was kept quiet.
Kevin De Bruyne (5/10):
Didn't have much of an impact after his 72nd minute introduction.
Pep Guardiola (4/10):
His team were always second best in this game, with his key men kept quiet and others making glaring and costly mistakes.
Liverpool made it two wins from their first two Champions League games this season, thanks to a 2-0 win over Italian outfit, Bologna. Arne Slot’s side were dominant throughout the game, and never really looked troubled, sealing the points thanks to goals from Alexis Mac Allister and the inevitable Mohamed Salah.
Mac Allister, a World Cup winner with Argentina, scored a simple tap-in, but it was superb play in the buildup. The midfielder linked up play nicely, before making a late dart into the penalty box and getting on the end of a teasing cross from Salah, to give the Reds the lead.
Salah’s goal doubled the lead for the home side with 15 minutes to go, cutting inside onto his left foot and lashing it into the top corner. It was a goal that capped off a dominant showing from Slot’s men, who sit fifth in the table of the new group phase.
There were certainly some standout performances throughout the evening at Anfield. Not least from Mac Allister, who was one of the stars of the show for Liverpool. However, it will come as no surprise to hear that one of the standout players once again was Salah.
Salah’s stats vs. Bologna
It was another vintage display from Liverpool’s Egyptian king at Anfield, and he once again put on a show for the Liverpool supporters. The winger was at his brilliant best, creating chances and looking like a constant threat on the attack.
His goal was superb, a trademark Salah finish. The Reds’ number 11 cut inside on his left foot, dummying with a clever drop of his shoulder, before driving into the Bologna penalty box and firing home into the top left-hand corner, as pinpoint as you could ask for. That goal went along with his superb assist for Mac Allister in the first half.
He received an impressive 9/10 rating from Ben Fleming, a journalist for The Metro. He hailed Salah’s performance which ultimately made the difference for Slot’s side, calling him ‘the architect’ of the Reds’ dominant win.
Indeed, his superb contribution was reflected in his Sofascore stats at full-time. Salah had a surprisingly low 37 touches of the ball but managed to provide three key passes and create one big chance, as well as creating the opener and sealing the three points with his wonder strike.
Salah’s performance was mightily impressive, but there was arguably a player who stood out more than the winger. That player is Ryan Gravenberch.
Gravenberch’s stats vs. Bologna
Since he was given the task of playing as a number six under Slot, Gravenberch has gone from strength to strength in a Liverpool shirt, and Wednesday night’s performance against Bologna was no different.
It was a superb, metronomic display at the base of the Reds’ midfield from the Dutchman, who has previously been deployed in more advanced roles. However, he seems right at home as a number six, dictating play with ease, and using his 6 foot 2 frame to his advantage, gaining an upper hand physically against opposition midfielders.
His stats from the game show just how impressive he was. The former Bayern Munich midfielder had 58 touches, two more than Liverpool’s first goalscorer Mac Allister. He was effective on the ball, creating two chances and completing three out of four dribbles. The Dutch international also won four out of six ground duels.
Stat
Number
Pass accuracy
91%
Touches
58
Passes completed
41/45
Ground duels won
4/6
Dribbles completed
3/4
Chances created
2
Gravenberch received an 8/10 from Fleming for his efforts against the Italian side on Wednesday. The journalist explained he ‘continues to thrive; as a number six, and explained that he ‘bossed’ the midfield at Anfield.
Slot will no doubt be delighted with the progress his side are making; the Reds have six points from six in the Champions League and are currently top of the Premier League. They look to extend their five-match winning run against Crystal Palace on Saturday lunchtime.
Liverpool wanted to sign £50m star for Klopp but ended up with Szoboszlai
Would he have been the better fit for Arne Slot’s side?
O Palmeiras teve dois nomes selecionados para o time ideal da América do Sul, feito pela IFFHS. A atacante Bia Zaneratto, que participou apenas da primeira metade da temporada alviverde, e a lateral Bruna Calderan foram escolhidas para a equipe.
continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasPalmeirasZagueiro Gustavo Dulanto é oferecido ao Palmeiras, que analisa jogadorPalmeiras28/12/2021PalmeirasPalmeiras divulga lista de relacionados para Copinha 2022Palmeiras28/12/2021PalmeirasBicampeão e copeiro, Abel tem segundo melhor aproveitamento na história da LibertadoresPalmeiras28/12/2021
The @Ranking_IFFHS @CONMEBOL Women's Team of the Year voted on by journalists in that confederation: @TIANEendler; @tamires, @daniela3oficial, @Erikac_09, Valeria Colmán; @andressinha_95, @catausme, Marta; @Gabinunes11_, @vicalbuquerq, @biazaneratto Coach: @arthurelias pic.twitter.com/OFCztx072M
— Asif Burhan (@AsifBurhan) December 28, 2021
A centroavante está ao lado de Victoria e Gabi Nunes no ataque ‘titular’. Bruna, por outro lado, ficou no ‘banco de reservas’.
Bia Zaneratto e Bruna Calderan se destacaram pelo Palmeiras na temporada 2021. As duas jogadoras, que fizeram parte da Seleção do Brasileirão A1, estarão em 2022 no Verdão.
Coach credits inexperienced players for “spirit” and “enthusiasm” throughout 45 days in bio-bubble
Saurabh Somani30-Jul-20215:34
Rahul Dravid: ‘All four spinners performed really well. We’re lucky to have this depth’
After a seven-wicket thrashing in the third T20I which ended in a series loss for a severely-depleted India XI, India coach Rahul Dravid felt that all that was needed was for the young batters to adapt to tougher pitches, also pointing to the unique set of circumstances that led to a very inexperienced batting line-up taking the field for the last two T20Is.”This was a really young team. All of us have had our struggles playing quality bowling, whether it’s spin or pace,” Dravid said at the post-match press conference. “Early on in our careers, we’ve all had those struggles and we’ve all had to fight our way through that. None of us have been perfect when we started, whether it’s my generation or any generation for that matter. It needs experience.”You need time, you need to blood young players with experienced players so that they have that cushion. Obviously, over the last couple of games, we didn’t have that cushion. Most of the guys who played, other than Shikhar [Dhawan], were really young. That’s not going to happen very often.”Related
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“Maybe the one thing that’s slightly different is that when I was starting or was growing up, the pitches in domestic cricket tended to turn a little bit more and spun a bit more,” he added, when comparing the current generation’s challenges to his own. “To be honest, some of them were under-prepared. But I don’t think the talent is missing, either in spin bowling or in the batting. We just need a little bit more experience in being able to figure out a few more different kinds of shots when we’re challenged with these kind of pitches. We just need to figure out a couple of more options. It was tough batting for them (Sri Lanka) as well.”With nine players unavailable for selection due to Krunal Pandya testing positive for Covid-19 before the second game, India couldn’t put out a balanced XI for the final two T20Is, going in with five batters and six bowlers, and having Bhuvneshwar Kumar – whose most frequent batting position in ODIs and T20Is has been No. 9 – up at No .6. They still stretched Sri Lanka to the final over while defending 132 in the second T20I, but could muster only 81 for 8 in the third.Playing with only five batters meant tactical changes in terms of how the team would construct an innings, and the pitches in the last two games offered a fair bit to the spinners too.”I just think the balance of our team in the last couple of games meant we had a couple of batsmen short, which was always challenging. But the great positive for me was the way the guys have fought,” Dravid said. “Especially in the second game, I think we took it really close. [A] couple of balls here or there and we could have actually won that game.”We’re kind of used to playing games where the scores are 160, 180, sometimes 200. But sometimes in challenging conditions, you’ve just got to learn how to scrap and fight your way to 130-140. I think that’s a great learning for our young players.”Dhawan apart, the other four batters for India were Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson and Nitish Rana. Among them, only Samson had any prior international experience before the Sri Lanka tour; and precious little at that, with just seven T20Is.”I’m not disappointed,” Dravid said of the batting performance. “They are young batters, they have to keep improving and getting better. The Sri Lankan team’s bowling attack is their international bowling attack. They’re missing a few batsmen because of various reasons, but this is a top quality attack. So it’s a great opportunity to reflect on these performances, reflect on these conditions, and maybe come up with some slightly better strategies.India had to manage with only five batters in the last two T20Is•Ishara S.Kodikara/AFP/Getty Images
“Let’s be fair, you don’t get these sort of conditions very often in T20 cricket, but when you do, I think you need to have a response. You need to be able to play slightly better. They’re all youngsters, we just need to have patience with them, give them more opportunities so that they can develop and grow.”The last two T20Is were played on successive days, but the Indian squad had to spend a lot more time off the field than on it. From quarantining in Mumbai a fortnight before the tour to having to deal with rescheduling of matches when there was a Covid outbreak among the Sri Lankans, in a period that lasted a month and a half, there were only six days of cricket.”I must admit it’s not been easy,” Dravid said of the bubble life the team had to endure. “It’s been almost 45 days for us and the thing was we only played six matches in those 45 days for a variety of reasons. We’ve only seen the hotel and the ground, and even in the hotel it’s only certain parts of the hotel. We haven’t been able to go everywhere in the hotel as well. It’s just a credit to all the boys, the way they maintained their spirit, maintained the enthusiasm, worked really hard. I can’t fault any of the boys for their effort.”The way Shikhar and Bhuvi [Bhuvneshwar Kumar, vice-captain for the tour] and the leadership group [led], the environment that they created was terrific as well. Just as much as it was tough for us and not an easy situation to be in, we’re lucky to play cricket as well. In times like this over the last year and a half, we’ve seen a lot of people go through a lot of suffering, go through some very, very difficult times. In some ways, we feel blessed to be able to do what we can and what we do. I can’t really be more proud of the way the boys handled themselves over 45 days, having only six matches to play.”
Trent Alexander-Arnold was coy in discussing his future, but it’s important not to read too deeply into the Liverpool vice-captain’s comments and instead understand that things will play out in due course.
You can be certain of one thing: Michael Edwards, Richard Hughes and Co will be fighting tooth and nail to reach an agreement with the homegrown superstar, who is of course playing the final campaign of his £180k-per-week contract.
The rather ominous obstacle in all of this is Real Madrid, Liverpool’s nemesis on the continent. The Reds have endured some tough times against Los Blancos over the years and now face the prospect of losing their biggest talent since Steven Gerrard to the European goliath. They are watching his situation closely, reports Fabrizio Romano.
Trent Alexander-Arnold vs Man United
How big an effect Alexander-Arnold’s friendship with Jude Bellingham will have is uncertain, but it could have been very different indeed, had the prodigious midfielder been signed to Anfield instead of Real Madrid.
Liverpool missed out on Jude Bellingham
Bellingham joined Real Madrid from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth £115m last summer after a prodigious few years in Germany.
He’s long been regarded as one of the biggest talents of his generation, and still only 21 years old, Bellingham is showing no sign of failing to reach the pinnacle of his potential, having played an instrumental role in winning the La Liga and Champions League last season.
Across all competitions in 2023/24, the England star scored 23 goals and added 13 assists across all competitions, wreaking havoc and being praised as “a gift for football” by his manager Carlo Ancelotti.
Matches (starts)
28 (27)
Goals
19
Assists
6
Pass completion
90%
Big chances created
7
Key passes*
1.7
Tackles + interceptions*
2.3
Ball recoveries*
4.2
Dribbles*
1.8 (59%)
Total duels won*
6.7 (55%)
The start to Bellingham’s current campaign has been disrupted by injuries but he placed an assist in the UEFA Super Cup as Madrid defeated Atalanta to start their season off with silverware, and returned last time out to help his side toward a dominant win over Espanyol.
He’s probably the most talented Englishman in the world, and he could have been doing it all at Liverpool. In April 2023, Liverpool withdrew from the race to sign Bellingham while he was still at Dortmund, with Jurgen Klopp’s side instead focusing on sweeping changes rather than one marquee deal that would preclude multiple other high-quality stars from joining the fold.
£115m was a tall figure, for sure, but Liverpool made an (unsuccessful) £111m move to sign Moises Caicedo from Brighton & Hove Albion later in the window. He ended up going to Chelsea but the money was clearly there.
Look, we don’t know the actual mechanics behind the saga. But Liverpool withdrew before the race heated up and instead moved to strengthen across a range of central positions. Still, it stings.
One that got away
The transfers that nearly happened but never did. This article is part of Football FanCast's One That Got Away series.
Jude Bellingham's market value in 2024/25
Now, Bellingham is widely regarded as one of the world’s best and it is anticipated that he will rank highly among the world’s best in the Ballon d’Or rankings, with the results announced on October 28.
Had Liverpool prevailed, they may well have strengthened their stance vis-a-vis Alexander-Arnold, who might be Liverpool’s most talented player. But indeed, Bellingham is more so, and his metrics reflect that.
As per FBref, the £337k-per-week phenomenon ranks among the top 7% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for goal contributions, the top 1% for pass completion, the top 3% for progressive passes, the top 11% for tackles and the top 7% for interceptions per 90. He’s the very best of football’s complete midfielders.
Jude Bellingham celebrates winning the Champions League
His market value reflects exactly that. According to CIES Football Observatory’s player-valuing tool, the English ace boasts an audacious market price of £235m, which actually makes him the most valuable footballer on their database. Alexander-Arnold is good, but not quite that good.
Call this pragmatic, but Klopp successfully pieced Liverpool’s rusty midfield back together with exciting new components, and it’s worked a treat.
Still, Bellingham is a generational talent, and you can’t help but shake the feeling that he wanted to move to Merseyside…
Liverpool flop who left for £5m is now outperforming Jota & emulating Messi
علق المدير الفني لمنتخب جنوب إفريقيا، هوجو بروس، على رحيل بيرسي تاو لاعب الأهلي السابق بعد انضمامه إلى نادي قطر خلال شهر يناير الماضي.
وانتقل تاو إلى الدوري القطري قبل نهاية عقده مع الأهلي بـ 6 أشهر فقط، خاصة وأنه كان لا يشارك بصفة مستمرة هذا الموسم تحت قيادة المدرب، مارسيل كولر.
وكان بروس دائم الشكوى من استمرار تاو مع الأهلي وطالبه أكثر من مرة بالرحيل عن القلعة الحمراء بعد استبعاده من منتخب جنوب إفريقيا.
اقرأ أيضًا | أشرف بن شرقي: رقم قميصي في الأهلي مفاجأة.. ولست قلقًا من جماهير الزمالك
وقال البلجيكي في تصريحات نقلتها مجلة “Soccer Laduma” في جنوب إفريقيا: “كنت سعيدًا بالفعل برحيله عن الأهلي، أمر جيد بالنسبة له، سنرى ما سيحدث معه في قطر”.
واستمر: “لا أعتقد أن هناك فارقًا كبيرًا في المستوى بين الدوري المصري والقطري”.
وأضاف: “الدوري المصري أفضل، نعم، لكن أهم شيء بالنسبة له هو المشاركة في المباريات، لم يفعل ذلك في الموسم الماضي مع الأهلي، كان على مقاعد البدلاء”.
وواصل تصريحاته: “كذلك كان مصابًا، لذلك لم يعتمد عليه المدرب (مارسيل كولر)، سعيد لأنه غير فريقه، لنأمل أن يلعب أكثر الآن”.
West Bromwich Albion will aim to make it three games unbeaten in the Championship when travelling to Stoke City this coming weekend, with confidence sky-high currently at the Hawthorns.
The Baggies didn't get the better of Leeds United in their second contest of the new league campaign, but a 0-0 draw with Daniel Farke's men isn't to be sniffed at, with four points from a possible six already on the board, after a comfortable 3-1 victory at Queens Park Rangers on the opening day.
Still, Carlos Corberan and Co will know that adding in more new recruits through the door will undoubtedly help in the long run, especially if they want to be pushing for promotion again, with this new midfielder now in talks to join.
West Brom pushing ahead to sign loanee
As per a report by the Express and Star, West Brom are pushing ahead to try and tempt Serbian midfielder Uros Racic to join the ranks this summer, with the Sassuolo gem potentially joining on a loan deal.
Standing at a towering 6 foot 4 frame, Racic is being touted as an ideal replacement for Okay Yokuslu, who is back in his native Turkey, to the widespread disappointment of the Baggies fanbase.
Yet, if they can now win the services of a new brute force in the middle of the park in Racic, any lingering dismay about the former fan favourite leaving will be quashed. The Serb is certainly some talent, having once been linked with a £28m move to Manchester United back in 2020, while boasting a £92m release clause at the time.
Moreover, away from Racic's skill set lending itself to him being an ideal Yokuslu replacement, picking up the Sassuolo number six could also see the Baggies abandon any further approaches for fellow target Callum Styles, with the Serbia international offering more cover in the middle.
What Racic can offer West Brom
Much like Styles, who has been known to hammer home a tremendous long-range strike for Barnsley during his stay at the Tykes, Racic also has a screamer in his back pocket, seen in the thunderous effort above sailing in against Atletico Madrid when he was on the books at Valencia.
The 26-year-old defensive midfielder also lined up on one occasion in the centre-back spots for Valencia when drafted out on loan to Spain, with Styles also known to be a versatile figure who can play all over the pitch if necessary, even lining up in defence at left-back when needed.
Stat – per 90 mins
Racic
Styles
Total shots
1.87
0.78
Shot-creating actions
1.87
1.90
Attempted passes
43.46
47.01
Pass completion %
81.3%
79.1%
Progressive passes
4.06
3.46
Tackles
1.10
2.46
Blocks
1.76
1.12
Clearances
2.41
1.67
Aerials won
1.32
0.56
Bettering Styles in a number of different areas of their respective games over the last year too, when glancing at the table above, Racic's also no-nonsense game shines through, with more clearances and duels won than his Hungarian counterpart.
He could well be West Brom's next Yokuslu in the making, therefore, who has managed to win 2.25 duels on average per 90 minutes over the last year, in comparison.
Racic might well become even more of a brute when moving to England, to attempt to match these higher numbers, knowing that Alex Mowatt will operate as the more creative option out of the potential holding duo.
Swooping in for the 12-time Serbia international would also see the Baggies continue to shop in left-field European markets, which has already paid off, with new Norwegian recruit Torbjørn Heggem winning six duels against Leeds last time out.
West Bromwich Albion manager Carlos Corberan.
Racic could now enter through the door and continue this successful transfer approach, as Corberan continues to try and add new players into what still looks like somewhat of a threadbare camp in the West Midlands.
West Brom struck gold on "outstanding" star who's worth more than Styles
West Bromwich Albion are continuing to reap the rewards of this shrewd purchase.
Birmingham City are closing in on yet another St Andrew's signing as they continue their busy summer following relegation to League One, it has emerged.
Birmingham summer signings so far
Relegated from the Championship on the final day of the 2023/24 campaign, new manager Chris Davies and the Blues will be looking for an instant return to England's second tier.
They had not been in the third tier since 1992, and have been backed to be crowned League One winners come the end of the campaign. To achieve that, they have been busy in the transfer market, signing seven players already.
Birmingham City summer signings
Player
Fee
Christoph Klarer
£3.5m
Willum Willumsson
£3.3m
Emil Hansson
£1.5m
Alex Cochrane
£1m
Ryan Allsop
£825k
Alfie May
£770k
Bailey Peacock-Farrell
£450k
Transfermarkt
Alfie May has arrived from Charlton Athletic, and marked his arrival with a pre-season winner against Rangers, while ex-Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday shot-stopper Bailey Peacock-Farrell has also been recruited and started against the Scottish giants.
Former Leeds goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell.
Also named in the starting XI were new signings Emil Hansson, Alex Cochrane and Willum Willumsson, while Christoph Klarer and Ryan Allsop both came off the substitutes' bench to contribute to the pre-season win. Now, they are all set to be joined by an eighth new face before the first game of the season kicks off against Reading on August 10th.
Leonard on verge of signing for Birmingham
That comes as Marc Leonard is on the verge of arriving at the club from Brighton. The young midfielder watched the pre-season friendly from the stands and is set to complete a switch to the midlands in a deal worth a total of £500,000, according to transfer reporter Fabrizio Romano, with a medical already having been completed.
In fact, Birmingham boss Davies has already confirmed that Leonard is on the verge of arriving at St Andrew's. "That one is pretty close. That will be our eighth signing of the transfer window so it's a huge volume of players but we need more," he said.
"We had a lot of youngsters coming on so it's important that we have depth. The volume of games we're going to play this season could be touching 60 so we need a strong squad to do what we need to do. We need a few more but he (Leonard) gets finalised and that's another good player that joins us."
Still just 22 years old, Leonard was into the final 12 months of his contract at the AMEX and will leave with just two senior appearances for the Seagulls, both coming in the 2021/22 campaign.
He has spent the last two seasons on loan with Northampton Town, helping them get promoted out of League Two and then ensuring that they avoided relegation in 2023/24, meaning that he is likely to come up against plenty of his former teammates this season while in Birmingham colours.
Heather Knight hopes Wyatt can build on her breakthrough hundred on New Zealand tour
Matt Roller22-Feb-2021But for Covid, England Women would be two weeks into the defence of their 50-over World Cup, with two out of seven group games to go and the semi-finals looming. Instead, the tournament has been postponed by 12 months, and they have not played an ODI in 436 days.That streak will finally come to an end this week, with their three-match series against New Zealand starting on Tuesday in Christchurch. After the vast majority of their home summer schedule was cancelled, England are starting from scratch: remarkably, this will be their first ODI under Lisa Keightley’s stewardship, nearly 16 months after her appointment as head coach.The wait has been particularly frustrating for those players who had hoped to nail down their places after their most recent series, against Pakistan in Malaysia in December 2019 with Ali Maiden taking temporary charge of the squad.Nobody embodies the frustration better than Danni Wyatt. Wyatt turns 30 in April, and the fact that her batting average is a shade below 20 in both ODI and T20I cricket prompts a double-take. Anyone who has seen either of Wyatt’s two T20I hundreds will know how talented a batter she is, but she has struggled to realise her potential in international cricket, perhaps hampered by regular shifts up and down the order.She is a player who relies on form and rhythm, which jars with the sporadic nature of the women’s international calendar. In that series in Malaysia she appeared to have finally cracked ODI cricket, making her first hundred in the format with an innings of 110 off 95 balls to set up a convincing win; since then, she has faced six balls in an ODI shirt.”It’s fair to say – and Danni will say this herself – that she hasn’t quite nailed ODI cricket yet,” Heather Knight, England’s captain, said on the eve of the New Zealand series. “She’s batted in a few different positions and it was obviously a real shame for her that she had that great hundred in Malaysia and then wasn’t able to back that up with the big break.”I really think it’s going to be a huge series for her – and a huge year – in terms of really nailing down her ODI cricket and what she could do for us at the top of the order. She naturally scores very quickly, and there are going to be times, probably, when she gets out early because we want her to be aggressive, play her natural game, and take the game on. But I’m really excited about what Danni could do.”Related
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England batters warm up with 299 in first tour game win
NZ pick Halliday, Jonas for Eng ODIs; Bates ruled out
The early signs are positive. Wyatt endured a tough 2020, managing a top score of 29 in 12 innings across the tri-series in Australia, the T20 World Cup and the home series against West Indies, but started the New Zealand tour with two enterprising innings: 35 off 42 balls in the first warm-up game, and 54 off 42 in the second.As a result, Knight is optimistic about the prospect of her flourishing in this series in a likely opening partnership with Tammy Beaumont, hinting that she will be given licence to attack early on and make use of the initial fielding restrictions.”She’s had a little bit of a lean year, to be honest,” Knight said, “but the signs are really good. She’s worked really hard over the last couple of months to be in a really good place with her game. The way she played in that second warm-up game was exactly how we want her to play. I’m excited to watch her bat, because you always think that something is going to happen.”[Her role] is slightly different to T20 cricket where it’s pretty much to go from ball one. She can take a little bit more time in ODI cricket, but her natural mindset is to be aggressive and score. She certainly puts pressure on bowlers and pressure on captains, so that’s her role: to go out and be herself, and back her shots.”England are “really ready to play ODI cricket”, Heather Knight said•Getty ImagesEngland’s touring party have a clean bill of health ahead of the series, meaning that Anya Shrubsole (knee) and Katie George (back) are the only absentees. Knight was unwilling to give much away in terms of selection, but it appears that the one remaining call revolves around whether Freya Davies or Tash Farrant is picked as the third seamer alongside Kate Cross and Katherine Brunt.”We’ve got some really strong depth in the seam-bowling department,” Knight said. “We’ll have to see what we go with later today and to see what the conditions are like as well. We haven’t played ODI cricket for a long time and New Zealand are a very strong side [so] it’s going to be a really good test for us.”Our preparation has been a little bit disjointed but I feel like as a team we’re really ready to play ODI cricket. Obviously, we’ve got a year before the World Cup in 2022, so that year is going to be key in terms of our preparation and showing us where we need to be and how we want to play our ODI cricket. I’m really excited to start that journey: it feels like a long time coming.”
Jaffer has become the third Uttarakhand coach to resign after a short stint in recent years
ESPNcricinfo staff11-Feb-2021Wasim Jaffer, the former India opening batsman and domestic giant, has resigned as Uttarakhand’s head coach citing “interference in team selection” days before they were to compete in the Vijay Hazare Trophy one-day tournament, starting February 20.”I feel really sad for the players as I genuinely think that they have lots of potential and can learn so much from me but are denied this opportunity because of so much interference and bias of selectors and secretary in the selection matters for non-deserving players,” Jaffer wrote in an e-mail to the Cricket Association of Uttarakhand (CAU).The 42-year-old Jaffer further wrote, “If the honorary secretary of CAU would want to inculcate such kind of work environment while not letting me take certain decisions pertaining to the team’s welfare and performance… then I don’t think there’s any valid reason for me to continue as head coach of men’s senior team of CAU.”Mahim Verma, the CAU secretary, rejected Jaffer’s allegations, countering that the coach had been given everything he had asked for since being appointed as the state team’s coach last June. “We gave him whatever he asked for, had a pre-season camp for a month, let him choose his outstation players, trainer and bowling coach, but his interference in selection matters was getting too much,” Verma told PTI.Uttarakhand had a poor run in the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament, winning just one game and losing four in the group stage, and that didn’t go down well with the association either.”After the result in Mushtaq Ali did not meet our expectations, the selectors wanted to try out a few other players but he kept insisting on picking his own team, which is not right as selectors are there, too, to do their job,” Verma said.Jaffer has become the third Uttarakhand coach to resign after a short stint in recent years – KP Bhaskar in 2019 and Gursharan Singh in 2020 had stepped down before Jaffer took charge.